On Friday November 23rd Fabian visited the Leeds Dogs Trust rehoming centre and was greeted by a number of VIPs (very important pooches). The Labour Party MP made many new furry friends at the centre, but it was clear for all to see that there was a special connection with puppy Shreddie.

Fabian is pictured with 'Shreddie' together with Clarissa Baldwin Chief Executive of the Dogs Trust and Ian Carnegie (member of Fabian's staff and keen dog lover)

Fabian also discussed key dog welfare issues with front line staff at the rehoming centre and scanned a microchipped dog. Staff at the centre explained the benefits of microchipping, a simple and effective tool that Dogs Trust believes should be made compulsory across the UK to help trace abandoned pets back to irresponsible owners and reduce the number of healthy dogs unnecessarily put to sleep in the UK.

"The staff at the centre and I were delighted to welcome Fabian Hamilton to Dogs Trust Leeds. The dogs were all on their best behaviour and had extra waggy tails to make him feel welcome!

Abandonment is one of the main reasons dogs come in to our centre, and this year we have seen 8,606 dogs picked up in the Yorkshire region, equating to 23 dogs being picked up each day by Local Authorities. We believe that these numbers could be reduced by the introduction of compulsory microchipping. We hope that Mr Hamilton's visit to our centre will help to highlight this important issue and be a positive step towards tackling the problem".

Fabian Hamilton MP commented:

"I have really enjoyed my visit to Dogs Trust Leeds. It has been a fantastic opportunity for me to witness first hand the work the staff at the centre do and meet some of the dogs being cared for. It is important that we highlight dog welfare issues across Yorkshire, especially given the number of stray and abandoned dogs in the region. I will work to urge the government to strengthen dog welfare legislation to prevent the problems of stray dogs in the Leeds North East constituency and UK as a whole."

Dogs Trust is the UK's largest dog welfare charity and cares for over 16,000 abandoned and unwanted dogs a year through its nationwide network of 18 rehoming centres. For more information about Dogs Trust, the UK's largest dog welfare charity, visitwww.dogstrust.org.uk.